4 comments about 1-2-3 Draw Pets and Farm Animals (123 Draw).

1. I bought a few books in this series for both myself and my daugher so that we could sit down to draw sth together. She is still a little bit too youg to draw sth serious, but it gave me a lot of fun.



2. I now have plenty of great pictures that my daughter has drawn with confidence. As time goes by she gets better and her pride is a wonderful gift to us. If your child wishes to draw it is a great way to introduce them.



3. This book is easy enough kids to have a good time with. Many of the drawing instructional books are too hard for elementary schoolers. My 8 year old used this book to learn how to draw a canary that looked like a canary.



4. Our family has other books in this series and we love them. If you think you are challenged when it comes to drawing, these are the books for you. My kids and I sit together and draw for hours, and I have as much fun as they do. I even sent some to my nephew for a gift, and he loved them as well.

2 comments about The Technique of North American Indian Beadwork.

1. I just got this book the other night, so I haven't had the chance to thoroughly read it yet. So far, I think the text part is better than the photography. I find it easy to read and it seems to touch on several topics. Unfortunately, not being well versed in Native American/Indian history, I don't know how accurate that information is, so I'm no help in analyzing that part of the book. He seems to me to do a good job describing techinques, and the illustrations are helpful to me. If you're looking for good photos though, I would not recommend this book.



2. Monte Smith has produced an excellent book for anyone wishing to begin authentic beadwork. He provides complete information regarding the materials and supplies needed. There is a lot of information about the technical aspects of this craft. The book has excellent illustrations on how to make the various stitches with beads on leather, which interested me the most. He has also included numerous photos of original artifacts that a person can use for design ideas. There is also a coded (by letters) reference under the photos which indicates the museums that have those items on display. The only improvement this basic book could have would be color photos which would be of help in selecting beads for a project.

No comments about Early Medieval Art 300-1150: Sources and Documents (MART: The Medieval Academy Reprints for Teaching).

3 comments about Jeremiah: A Romantic Vision.

1. If you enjoy the early 60's aesthetic of the wealthy this is a fantastic book. Really gorgeous designs of a great designer at his best.



2. Previously I had viewed some of the material in various magazines and was eager to see more of Mr. Goodman's work. This book does not disappoint. As an interior designer I have always admired the art of "rendering." The book is a treasure to be enjoyed over and over again.



3. Mr. Goodman's remarkable talent to paint a portrait of an interior as lush, dramatic, grander than grand was clearly sought after by a legion of society's most celebrated style icons. Like the American painter John Singer Sargeant, Mr. Goodman's confident handling of paints thrusts the viewer into a world of impossible glamour. Environments that boasted the highest ceilings,gleaming marble floors, heavy gold frames,crystal ornaments, rare fabrics covering museum worthy pieces of furniture and forests of exotic plants all bathed in the most dramatically dappled sunlight easily, happily, transports the viewer to a dreamy never never land.We're talking rooms dressed to impress and then some!Homes belonging to high-style mavens like screen goddess-Greta Garbo,society designer- Bill Blass and the boy-crazy shutterbug who eroticized the male form in the public imagination, Mr. Bruce Weber. There's a history lesson here of decorating styles through the mid 20th century of both public and private settings. But the strength of the book is the spectacular painting technique and the rich, romantically luxurious point of view of the gifted artist, Mr.Goodman. In the 21 century world thats devoid of any masterful illustrations in the popular press, to see such skilled, dreamy, visionary work is a special treat indeed.

5 comments about Georgia Quilts: Piecing Together a History (Wormsloe Foundation Publication) (Wormsloe Foundation Publication).

1. from the wonderful plays on words in the title, to the chapter notes at the end of the book, this book is filled with delights.
   
   as two other reviewers have noted, there are wonderful, amazing and rare quilts included in this book. besides the lethal (perfect adjective!) saw quilt, there are broderie perse, pieced, four block, crazy, and string pieced quilts (and a quilt machine pieced and quilted--in the 1860s!). a feature of this book that i particularly enjoyed was the number of late-20th century quilts included. i was left with the impression that georgia quilters had no problems with innovation and individuality. also interesting were the run-of-the-mill quilts, many near disintegration. these not only showed what was used on a day-to-day basis, but give context to the more elaborate quilts.
   
   the georgia history is interesting--i had no idea the state had had a thriving textile industry. there are many fascinating photos, and even diagrams of various styles of quilting frames. there is a very interesting section that compares statistically euro-american and afro-american quilts by subject matter.
   
   since two other reviewers have done such a good job of reviewing this book, i will end by saying that this is a must-have book for quilters.



2. I'm interested in Vintage quilts, and State Quilt Study Groups publications are a great place to become acquainted with regional quilt patterns and aesthetics prior to 1900. Georgia Quilts is a bit disappointing compared to some other State Quilt books. Relatively few quilts prior to 1900, although some are superb; a Circular Saw that looks positively lethal, and a breathtakingly beautiful Lotus Blossom. Most State Quilt books are organized chronologically, this one is not, so there may be more pre-1900 quilts than I think. There's a lot of space devoted to non-quilting topics- including a chapter on King Cotton, which was interesting, and - not un-associated with quilts. Oh, two of Harriet Powers' fabulous quilts are pictured.



3. Great book and very reasonably priced
   
   Received within 5 days to Australia
   
   Well done



4. Fellow quilters understand; its the photos that make or break a book about quilts, and these photos are fabulous. The text is lively and informative and makes me wish to see another exhibit of historic quilts!



5. I am still poring over this beautifully formatted and photographed book, and I've owned it for six weeks. It is a joy to behold and an important addition to current knowledge of textile and quilt history.
   
   It is notable for the new quilts it brings to light and for the sheer number of quilts from the various eras in Georgia's long history. Clearly the quilt search that produced it was far-reaching, ambitious.
   
   GEORGIA QUILTS also should interest quilt historians for the light it throws on quilts of the Deep South. Those seeking trends or commonality of patterns, textiles, quilting traditions, and other elements of the quilter's art now have another important resource.
   
   In short, it is a beautiful book, filled with well-rendered full-page photographs of quilts not previously seen in print, with vintage photographs to provide context. Buy it for the quilts you will see, if for no other reason. It cannot fail to please.
   
   The decision to organize the quilts by something more meaningful than chronology suggests the complexity of the body of quilts and offers options for deeper exploration of trends and issues. In this choice, the editors have the fine KANSAS QUILTS as precedent. A problem associated with such a decision, of course, is a possible lack of consistency in the quality of treatment and approach to the items studied.
   
   GEORGIA QUILTS shows some of the problematic effects of this approach. For instance, some writers speculate more freely than others. When addressing the appearance of a blue-green color popular sometime around or just after the Civil War, the writer states the color visible today is "probably" the result of a fabric fade from a two-step home dye process. Yet throughout the book, this identical color appears in post-Civil War quilts in combination with cheddar and oxblood. The consistency raises questions that need addressing, for this color offers clues for dating and placing historical quilts of unknown provenance. Hardly novel to Georgia, it is seen throughout the Mid- and Deep South in the same general hue. One wonders what a search of cotton mill inventories in the period might have revealed.
   
   Yet, while fewer unsupported generalizations would improve the book, to a large extent, the problem is characteristic of state quilt books because of the number of items that require consideration in a relatively short space. Perhaps all one might ask of such books is a representative sampling, accompanied by an effort at interpretation that will point the direction for future scholarship. In this, GEORGIA QUILTS succeeds.
   
   And if only for the sheer array of quilts, well photographed and well displayed, and the complementary photographs from the Vanishing Georgia collection of the Georgia Historical archives, it deserves a place in the library of everyone interested in American quilts, American history, Southern culture and arts, or the history of quiltmaking.
   
   Here you will find 'Possum quilts, a Circular Saw to beat all Circular Saw quilts, and enough lively examples of the quilter's art to suggest the character of Georgia's culture over time and to give abiding pleasure.
   
   The editors are to be commended on their inclusion of many quilts heretofore not seen in regional quilt books and on their organizational decision. The varied treatments, including solid chapters on feedsack quilts, African-American quilts, and "King Cotton" are informative and introduce either new perspectives or focus earlier ones more sharply. The two chapters on early quilts present fine new examples, brilliantly photographed, and a range sometimes not found.
   
   GEORGIA QUILTS is an excellent addition to the study of Southern culture and American quilt history in general. It is a must-own.
   
   I recommend following this book with Nancilu Burdick's LEGACY: THE QUILTS OF TALULA BOTTOMS. Bottoms was a Georgian who experienced the Battle of Atlanta and lived into a new century, quilting all the while. Though like many Scots-Irish Southerners after the Civil War, her family eventually moved to west--in her case, to Limestone County, Alabama--for better farming land, Bottoms remained a Georgian in her heart and outlook. Her story might well have been a chapter in GEORGIA QUILTS.

No comments about Lino Tagliapietra in Retrospect: A Modern Renaissance in Italian Glass.

4 comments about Picasso.

1. I've been reading Richardson's Picasso biography, and he refers so frequently to the Steins that I had to buy this book. I found it absolutely charming, witty, and typical Gertrude Stein. Her prose runs in circles, and she's consistently self-focused. She views herself as a pioneering art doyenne and one of the few who truly understood the art movements in Paris in the early part of the 20th century. But her affection for Picasso is undeniable, and that's what makes this book so wonderful to read.
   
   Picasso often felt that Gertrude in fact did *not* get what was going on with cubism and his and Braque's works. But she liked to have artistic company, Picasso liked that she bought so much of his work, so their relationship worked.
   
   This is a quick book to read - contrary to what another review suggests - and makes for a wonderful Saturday afternoon. It helps if you know something of Picasso's history, so read this with a collection of his work on the side.



2. In this epochal gem originally published in London in 1938, Gertrude Stein tells of the arrival and rise of Picasso, and through him, Modernism and the 20th century, filtered through her own performance art. By "filtered" I am not suggesting that it is fiction or distorts its subject; in fact, it's a live action postcard from the epicenter of the man and movement. Not only does it inform with fact, it informs with form.

   Stein says with characteristic self assurance that she alone understood Picasso and compared what he did in art to what she did with words, and there is merit in the comparison. Picasso, influenced by the Spaniards, came to believe that truth existed in the conceptual realm, it did not come from the material world. Whereas proceeding generations accepted what they saw before them as truth and responded realistically, Picasso chose to portray his inner vision on canvas and backed away from using models. Cubism became his way of signifying how he experienced the significance of the still life or human form. A person, a tableau was not perceived as the whole but as parts, some of them standing out more prominently than others. Similarly, Stein orders her information according to emphasis, with her characteristic tic of repetition--remember, this is the person who gave us lines like "A rose is a rose is a rose" and "there is no there, there."

   Stein does not overindulge herself, however, and imparts a generous amount of lucid thought on how Picasso created and from what and whom he drew his influences. She progresses chronologically through his periods-the blue, the rose, the harlequin, Cubist, calligraphic, etc., up to the point she was writing. This plus salient insights into society, war, creative artists and the 20th century in general make the volume quite a deal in a small package.




3. As has been written elsewhere (Try Hemingway's A MOVEABLE FEAST, for instance) Gertrude Stein possessed a tremendous ego. She did not express opinions, she stated facts even when the basis for her facts existed only in her head. She also had the irksome habit of repeating the same information many times, often approaching it from slightly different directions. Again, I am certainly not the first to comment on this peculiarity of her writing. That this book is filled with examples of both of the above does not take away from its excellence in revealing much about Picasso and his art.

   Stein's fame comes more from her position in the intellectual and artistic community of early to mid twentieth century Paris than from her ability as a writer or poet. It was because of this position that she came to know Picasso so well, and it was as an outgrowth of this personal relationship that this book came to be written.

   One area that I found very informative in PICASSO was Stein's analysis of the alternating influences of Picasso's Spanish soul, Paris, and Spain itself, on the various periods of Picasso's artistic development. In this respect, Stein contrasts Spain and France in the following manner: Spain was a sad country with a monotony of coloring while France was the country of Toulouse-Lautrec with vivid colors and images.

   With that as a background, she introduced Picasso, as a young man in Spain, painting realistic works in the late nineteenth century manner. This was followed by his first visit to Paris during which he was influenced by the paintings of Toulouse-Lautrec. (See illustration #3, "In the Cafe") He then returned to Spain in 1902, staying until 1904. During this period, his temperament returned to that of his native Spain and he produced the darker, more somber paintings of his "blue period." This period ended with his return to Paris in 1904. Throughout the balance of PICASSO, Stein traced his painting cycles and the people and experiences that influenced them.

   Picasso revealed to Stein, and she passed on to us, one of the main secrets of his later styles. He saw as a very young child saw, and painted what he saw through those infantile eyes. An infant sees what it sees from very close up and, consequently, only sees one or two of its mother's features at a time. An infant can't focus at a distance and probably couldn't recognize its own mother from across a room. That infant would probably recognize an eye or a nose, or one or two other features. That same child would probably only recognize its mother in profile, and only from one side at that, i.e., left or right profile, but not both. This was the vision that Picasso brought to his art: a recognizable eye, a nose in profile, and these not necessarily connected in any way that makes sense to the eye of an adult viewer. It was one of the geniuses of Picasso that he could utilize this vision in his art, and it was as a gift that Gertrude Stein let us in on the secret.

   I have visited the Picasso museums in Barcelona and Paris, and through their displays, have traced Picasso's evolution as an artist. Neither museum was as instructive relative to Picasso's thought processes as was this small book with its many black and white illustrations. For having providing these insights, I can forgive Gertrude Stein for all her mannerisms and displays of ego.

   Much more information about Picasso and the literary and artistic personages of his era can be gained by reading this book. I do recommend it.




4. Gertrude Stein's fifty-odd page remembrance of Pablo Picasso is brief in page length only. Her convolved writing style challenges the reader to think within the context of Picasso's own creative processes. This is not a quick read, but I was struck by how Stein had her finger on the pulse of Picasso's drive and desire in painting. Her scope is concerned with the Red and Blue Periods and the start of Picasso's role in the invention of Cubism. As much of a literary challenge as it is a close reading of several important Picasso paintings, including Stein's own famous portrait.

No comments about The Villas of Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret 1920-1930.

5 comments about A Guide to Graphic Print Production.

1. Absolutely every chapter has at least 10 misspellings or grammatical errors in it. It is quite funny how in the first chapter they stress how important it is to proof copy before it goes to the printer. Maybe the authors or the publisher need to read the book themselves. It is a very dry book and each chapter covers the main points with in the first few pages then repeats the topics over and over again through out the rest of the chapter. I would not recommend this book unless the person does not mind being distracted by misspelling, grammatical errors, and repetition.



2. This book has a ton of great information, and has been very helpful. But I have to agree that it is filled with typos, which makes them look bad. BUT the HUGE problem with this book it the text is too freaking small. These
   idiot 's should have known this being graphic designers/printers, it is SO hard to read. They made the text at about a 9 or 10 point. And no, I am not farsighted, or really old and can't see, I am a young graphic designer, but find it VERY hard to read this text.
   
   Because of this I wouldn't reccommend this book, find a different book that knows how to spell, and knows not to make the reading text a 9 point



3. I teach first & second year multimedia and design at a community college. Following are my thoughts on this book.
   
   Pros:
   Summaries- The sidebar summaries and callouts are truly excellent. Often, there are accompanying illustrations that are "worth a thousand words".
   
   Depth of information- Overall, there is a *lot* of information here. No punches are pulled when it's presented, either. As far as I can tell, the information is accurate.
   
   Images- The illustrations and photos used are of excellent quality. There are images of magnified printed pages from different printing process that are crystal clear.
   
   Cons:
   Typos- There is at least one typo per page, often combined with a grammatical error as well. 99% of the time you can figure out what it means with little to no trouble.
   
   European Conventions used inconsistently- Most of the time, the authors used North American conventions...except when they don't. It's a great idea to give info on both North American *and* European conventions (A4 vs. 8.5" x 11" paper, pixels per inch vs. centimeters per inch), but the authors do not always clearly delineate which convention is used.
   
   
   Overall, this book reads like a detailed technical manual. It is *not* a design manual with splashy sidebars about finding inspiration. It is *not* for the novice designer. The publisher needs to get it proofed a time or three. Despite its shortcomings, I use it in the course of building lectures for my class constantly. The only other book I've seen get this in-depth is the Int'l Paper Pocket Pal.
   
   This review is for the second edition of the book.



4. Yes ok , this book may be full of useful information for graphic designers or students of graphic design but the thing that really miffed me is that I spent $80 on this book and come to read it and find that virtually every page has AT LEAST one typo or obvious gramatical error in it. As a student of graphic design (who really cant afford an $80 book) this really bugs me that so much emphasis is put on spell checking your work over and over to make sure there are no mistakes and then you buy a book all about graphic design and it's jam packed with typo's! How unproffessional is that?! And that is why I only give it one star. If you can get past the typo's and the gramatical errors that make the difficult subject matter even more difficult to digest then go ahead and get the book cos it will be worth it - but if so little effort was put into spell checking the book - it makes me wonder about the accuracy and the validity of the information contained.



5. The book arrived timely and in good condition. Got my money's worth. Reliable seller.

5 comments about That's the Way I See It.

1. One of the best David Hockney books.
   A must have if you are interested in his photo montage method aka joiner method.



2. i had read it before and i just had to have it, its an amazing book even if you dont know david hockneys work, the book will make you fall in love with him and his art



3. Fortunately for us, Chronicle Books continues to grace the art bookstores with superb and affordable monographs on art that make a difference. In this completely enchanting, richly illustrated book David Hockney conducts a conversation with us, the reader, sharing his unique and genteel ideas on how he sees and hence composes the paintings and drawings and photographic montages and sets of operas that have so enriched the art world since he first began his long career.
   
   Hockney's writing style is quietly warm, honest, clever, whimsical and very informed. In this truly magnificent volume he is sharing not only his forays into experimental art (his influences from Picasso, Bacon, and the many MANY illustrious friends who fill his life), he also allows us to understand why he experiments with photography (his explosive yet intimate collages of Polaroid rooms of conversing friends are unique to Hockney), his manner of viewing huge spaces and then parceling them onto paper or canvas in a manner that allows us to see vistas not available to the isolated glance, his still lifes, his sketches and portraits of studio visitors - the volume of work is staggering.
   
   Another fine discussion revolves around is spectacular sets for opera (Tristan und Isolde, Turandot, The Magic Flute, A Rake's Progress, Die Frau Ohne Schatten) - these coming from an artist who is almost completely without hearing making music visual!
   
   For all lovers of Hockney's work as well as for those who want to understand why he so very popular, this is one of the best introductions available about the man and his work! Highly Recommended. Grady Harp, July 06



4. I have been a fan of David Hockney's for many many years and was delighted to find this book. He writes in an understated, easy way about his art and about modern art in general.

   Two of the sections were particularly interesting: "Art versus the Art World" and "The Power of Art".

   In the book, Hockney explained how places and his personal experiences have influenced his art over the years. He talks about how he is incorporating photography into his work and feels that it is an artist's responsibility to be open to new forms of expression. He says he is an "artist who is always working". I think he is always experimenting too, with different methods of expressing his artistic vision.

   He said he asssumes that if he is interested in painting something, others will be interested as well. I loved this viewpoint....in other words, he creates for himself.

   This was a lovely book---especially all of the GORGEOUS color reproductions which traced the Hockney's evolution and his journeys.




5. This is an interesting book because it explains the discovery of ways of seeing, and in the process of explaining alters the way the reader sees art.

   The challenge of pop art or abstract art is that to the uninitiated it seems gimmicky, and one often goes 'you've got to be kidding?' But with this wonderful exploration of the different ways that art and photography are ways of capturing a point of view, not a reproduction of a point of view. And more importantly, how Mr. Hockney comes to these expressions of point of view you get a glimpse of not only an interpretation of art, but the process of art. I love words and the essays are as magnificent as his art in their clarity and honesty. The section on his photo montages are amazing.